The present invention relates to a process for the determination of uranium (VI) or dialkyl dithiophosphoric acid present in an organic solvent comprising a neutral organophosphorus compound with an electron donor oxygen atom, such as an organic solvent constituted by tributylphosphate diluted in dodecane.
It is known that in installations for extracting uranium ores or in installations for the reprocessing of irradiated fuels, uranium extraction generally takes place in an organic solvent, followed by the reextraction of this uranium in an aqueous solution.
In order to be able to check the operation of such installations, it is important to be able to rapidly establish the residual uranium contents of the organic solvents leaving the reextraction stage.
At present, the uranium present in such organic solvents is determined by a colorimetric method using dibenzoyl methane. However, this method requires complex operations, so that it is not possible to easily and rapidly obtain the results of the determination. Moreover, with this method the colouring is due to an intramolecular transition of the attached ligand, which is not specific.